A name all Bulls fans should be familiar with, and likely dread. Yes, David Blatt. The man who should have received a technical foul for attempting to call a timeout with none remaining. Due to the officiating crew’s negligence, the Chicago Bulls were cheated out of a 3-1 series lead against Cleveland in the 2015 NBA Playoffs.
Thanks to Blatt, we also had to suffer through this infamous moment:
It’s understandable if hearing Blatt’s name– or anything related to Cleveland, for that matter– evokes a response from your gag reflexes. But you have to give credit where credit is due, Blatt can flat-out coach.
After playing college basketball at Princeton, Blatt went on to learn international basketball during 12 years of playing professionally in Israel. Following his playing career, he transitioned directly into coaching.
It wasn’t long before Blatt became an overwhelming success. He has led the Russian national team to an Olympic bronze medal. He’s also taken home the EuroLeague and EuroCup championships, as well as earned the honor of being named EuroLeague Coach of the Year. To top it off, Blatt has collected titles in a mind-boggling 18 international leagues and tournaments.
His success outside the NBA earned Blatt the opportunity to coach the Cleveland Cavaliers. He steered the team to a 53-29 record and an NBA Finals appearance, where Blatt and Warriors’ coach Steve Kerr made history as the first ever rookie head coaches to make the finals.
The following year, Blatt and the Cavs got off to a scorching hot 30-11 record… when he was promptly fired. While seemingly succeeding all expectations, tensions inside the Cleveland locker room had risen to a boiling point. Superstar LeBron James pushed Blatt out of the picture in favor of assistant coach Tyronn Lue, who allowed James to implement his own vision for the team.
Cavaliers General Manager David Griffin indicated the firing was due to “a lack of fit with our personnel and our vision.” Regardless of what Cleveland’s reasoning may have been, Blatt wouldn’t have achieved the highest winning percentage in franchise history if he wasn’t doing something right.
Ignoring the dysfunction in Cleveland and allowing Blatt to come in and implement his high-powered offensive scheme would be an excellent decision by the Chicago Bulls front office. It would be very difficult to find a head coach replacement who has more experience and a proven track record to help mold the young core into a successful team.